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Shafter, California - 4 schools
An equity score of 82/100 ranks Richland Union Elementary #60 of 1517 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $17,728 per pupil, Richland Union Elementary ranks #423 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
2,575
Total Enrollment
4
Schools
$17,728
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Middle
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Richland Union Elementary operates 4 public schools serving 2,575 students, placing it among the smallest districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 3 elementary, 1 middle schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Kern County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $17,728 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending. See how California compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 17.5% local, 63.9% state, and 18.6% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 82/100, ranked #60 of 1517 in California against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
a 558:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 60.9% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 93.3% Hispanic or Latino, 4.4% White, 1.4% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Sequoia Elementary, with a diversity index of 20.4/100.
Its largest campus is Golden Oak Elementary, enrolling 717 students (30% of the district's total enrollment).
Golden Oak Elementary accounts for 27.8% of all Richland Union Elementary student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Richland Union Elementary-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: elementary. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Richland Union Elementary has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 79.2% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility — including this one — receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Richland Union Elementary student-counselor ratio is 558:1 — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Richland Union Elementary chronic absenteeism rate is 60.9% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
How many schools are in Richland Union Elementary?
Richland Union Elementary has 4 schools, including 3 elementary, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 2,575 students.
How much does Richland Union Elementary spend per student?
Richland Union Elementary spends $17,728 per student. The district has an equity score of 82/100, ranking #60 in California.
What is the demographic composition of Richland Union Elementary?
Richland Union Elementary students are 93.3% Hispanic or Latino, 4.4% White, 1.4% Asian, 0.8% African American, averaged across 4 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Richland Union Elementary?
Richland Union Elementary has an equity score of 82/100, ranking #60 out of 1517 districts in California.